**First Person ARC Review: *The Haunting at Morsley Manor* by George Morris De’Ath**

*The Haunting at Morsley Manor* is exactly the kind of gothic ghost story I love to lose myself in—moody, immersive, and just the right amount of unnerving. From the moment I crossed the threshold of that crumbling old estate alongside the protagonist, I knew I was in for something deliciously eerie.

This book doesn’t rely on cheap scares. Instead, it lets the dread build slowly, like fog rolling in through the cracks of a house that’s been holding its breath for a century. The manor itself is beautifully rendered—decaying grandeur, secrets in the wallpaper, and a presence that you can never quite see, but always feel. It gave me that creeping sense that something was watching, waiting, just out of view.

What elevated this for me was the emotional weight behind the haunting. This isn’t just a story about ghosts—it’s about the grief, guilt, and history we inherit whether we want to or not. There’s a real sadness woven through the horror, and it gave the story depth I didn’t expect.

By the time the final revelations came, I felt like the house had gotten under my skin too. If you enjoy gothic fiction that’s more psychological than bloody, more atmospheric than action-packed, *The Haunting at Morsley Manor* is a chilling, beautifully written descent into the past that lingers like a whisper in the dark.

Such a fun and eerie read! Haunted manor, ghost hunter with baggage, and a creeping sense of dread that doesn’t let up. The twists hit, the pacing was tight, and I was fully locked in from start to finish.

This book absolutely had a lot of different elements and some fantastic twists. It started off with a bang and sucks you into the story quickly. The main character is super likable and intriguing with his special “gift”. The opening chapters pack a punch and there is definitely lots of good spooky vibes in this book.

With that said, this kind of missed the mark for me. After a strong start, I felt like the middle third of this book lulled. I do appreciate all the different horror elements but I felt like it was trying to do too much at once: ghosts, creatures, covens, possession, and slasher stuff? It didn’t all seem coherent for me, and seemed a bit jumbled at times. And randomly suggesting some “apocalypse” type event? It felt disjointed.

I also feel like some key elements were kind of just glossed over any never resolved. Leaving readers to try and understand what seemed like was an integral part of the story (Eric’s “gift” for one) were just not well explained or understood.

The bones of the story were there, but it was the execution and sometimes jumbled themes that made it less enjoyable for me.

3.75 stars

Eric is a famous paranormal investigator with some major tragedies in his past. After a case they were investigating got many on his crew killed, Eric has faced immense backlash. Even his best friend and partner has abandoned him.

Now, he has the opportunity to investigate a place he had never been given permission to visit: Morsley Manor. A strange woman offers him the opportunity and knowing he won’t get another chance at a comeback, Eric finds himself at the Manor, with a new partner.

He has no idea what he is stepping into. I really enjoyed the haunting aspects. Morsley Manor is wild and its inhabitants are ghastly. Eric discovers more than he expects during his time there and it’s a great time.

I really liked Eric as a character. He gets dealt some pretty poor hands and mistakes are made, but he is full of caring and compassion. I thought this was a solid haunted house horror with some wacky characters and spooky scenes.

I got this arc for review on Netgalley.

3.5 stars rounded. I liked it, it held my attention and it got suspenseful and spooky. Intruiging plot and well written characters.

Thank you to the publishers and author for allowing me an e-ARC via NetGalley!

I needed a little cleanse from heavy books/series, so I thought I’d try this as it sounded like a good horror book! This book follows the journey of Eric, a paranormal investigator who is recruited to explore and film in a known haunted house. The context and background we are given about Eric is really interesting, and it really helps to humanise him. We explore his relationships with those around him, and how these are impacted by his career choice.

There is some good LGBTQ+ representation in this story, and it felt really inclusive and diverse. There were unexpected events which were interesting and helped keep the reader on their feet. It was also great on the ‘spooky’ factor as I found I was constantly looking around myself when I was in the dark!

This book flowed pretty well and it was a good pace consistently throughout, although I did find that it didn’t really ‘hook’ me in sometimes. There were also parts that ventured into the ‘fantasy’ genre, but I found that this made things appear less scary for me as I tend to find ‘real life’ things scary. I feel more afraid about ghostly apparitions and possessions that I do about demon children and spiders. But generally it was a good horror book and good for those who enjoyed Goosebumps as a child!

Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded up to 4) (⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)